


Shatter and Break (reject my reality)

by Seito



Category: Katekyou Hitman Reborn!
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Angst and Feels, BAMF!Kyouko, Brother-Sister Relationships, Dark, Gen, Justice, Queen of the World Kyouko, Revenge, sky!kyouko
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-11-27
Updated: 2019-02-23
Packaged: 2019-09-01 07:21:17
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 9,766
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16760557
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Seito/pseuds/Seito
Summary: Kindness, they said, was a choice. To be kind was a decision made every day because those who offered kindness knew exactly why the world needed a little bit of kindness. To mistake kindness for naivety was foolishness. Kind people were the people who made the world a little bit better, a little bit brighter.So what happens when you throw that kindness away?(Kyoko was forged the hottest fires, cooled in the coldest of ice and this is what happens you push a kind person too far.)





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

  * For [OnceABlueMoon](https://archiveofourown.org/users/OnceABlueMoon/gifts), [loosecloudymist_OperaEagleAce](https://archiveofourown.org/users/loosecloudymist_OperaEagleAce/gifts), [Kosaji](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Kosaji/gifts), [Constantly_Oscitating](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Constantly_Oscitating/gifts).



Kindness, they said, was a choice. To be kind was a decision made every day because those who offered kindness knew exactly why the world needed a little bit of kindness. To mistake kindness for naivety was foolishness. Kind people were the people who made the world a little bit better, a little bit brighter.

So what happens when you throw that kindness away?

-.-.-.-

Sasagawa Kyoko was a kind girl. She smiled brightly, laughed loudly, and faced every day with a skip in her step and joy in her heart. Kyoko threw herself into helping others, offering a kind smile, because if she kept trying, if she kept herself busy, she wouldn’t think too much about the empty cold home and her neglectful parents who were never around. 

Bless Ryohei-nii. 

Unlike Kyoko who let her dark thoughts cloud her mind, Ryohei never failed to be upbeat, never failed to be strong. He was her pillar and Kyoko leaned on him when the world came too overwhelming, her shelter in the storm of life. 

Ryohei never held it against her. “Don’t worry, Kyoko!” Ryohei said, beaming like the bright sun he was. “I’ll never leave you alone.” He swung his arm around her shoulder and pulled her close. 

Kyoko felt the hope and love surge in her chest. She may be lonely, her parents may be neglectful and their home may be always feel too cold, too empty, but she could face the world with Ryohei-nii by her side. 

“Thanks, nii-san,” Kyoko said. 

The Sasagawa siblings against the world. Kyoko couldn’t imagine a better way to live her life. 

-.-.-.-

There was a bubbling sticky heat burning beneath her skin. Kyoko pulled at the collar of her shirt, feeling raging heat under her skin. She wasn’t perspiring, strange, given the way her blood boiled, as if she was burning from the inside out.

It had been helpful as the months got colder, but spring was coming and it felt as if she was living in a desert, the heat beating down on her, unrelentingly. 

“Kyoko!” 

A giggle escaped from her lips as Ryohei picked her up, swinging her around like he always did. “Nii-san,” Kyoko said. 

Ryohei smiled, setting her back on the ground to give her a thumbs up. “I came to tell you that I will be home late!”

Suddenly, that heat was gone as she had been plunged into an icy cold water, drowning and crawling for air. She tried not to let the sheer panic show up on her face, the crumbling sensation of the ground falling away beneath her feet. “Again?” she asked. This marked the fourth time this week and it was only Friday. 

Ryohei pumped his fists. “Rebo-sensei has offered a late night training session at Sawada’s house! It’ll be the perfect thing I need to improve my boxing!” He took off, waving to her as he left. “See you later, Kyoko!” 

“Nii-san!” Kyoko sharply called out. 

But it was too late, he was already gone. 

Bitterness welled up in her mouth, in the back of her throat, foul tasting like the most dangerous of poisons. Tsuna-kun, huh? A frown rested on her face, a simmering resentment. Ryohei was spending more and more time with Tsuna and… it made her _jealous_. 

It was silly. Tsuna was a perfectly nice boy. It was good to see he was making friends. Kyoko tried but Tsuna never seemed comfortable around her, so she never pushed. Ryohei didn’t have many friends, so Kyoko supported this. 

It was _fine_. Even if she felt like there was a secret being kept from her. Even if she much rather keep her brother close and far away from Tsuna. Even if she was now headed back to an empty cold house, _alone_. 

She could hear the sound of something shattering deep inside her mind. 

-.-.-.-

The mafia. 

Kyoko felt disgust roll in her stomach, her ears not believing the story that Tsuna (Tsuna-kun! Sweet Tsuna-kun! Kind Tsuna-kun!) had told her. The wild tale of the mafia, of rainbow colored frames, that they had traveled to the future and were being held as bait (as hostages) to a plan an older, a crueler Tsuna had come up with. 

It was too much, too overwhelming. Her mind scrambled, trying to piece together, trying to force, to meld the truths, the facts, the fictions, the lies. Where did it end? Where did it begin? When did it become acceptable to for Tsuna-kun to just… lie to her face like that? What right did he have to decide what she knew or not? 

The mafia. The actual Italian mafia. The mafia that dealt with guns and death and who knew what the media painted as truth and as exaggeration, but always, always, always right about the danger? What safety was there in ignorance? What safety was there in blindness? 

Every fiber of her being screamed. Every instinct roared, in rage, in fear, quaking like an earthquake, rumbling like thunder and she couldn’t, wouldn’t-

“Hahi! We understand,” Haru said. 

Kyoko mentally swayed, the jagged sharp edges of betrayal stabbing her heart. Understand? This? (This was the final piece, that no matter what friendship laid between them, this shaped the difference between her and Haru.) 

Tsuna beamed and all Kyoko could do was reflexively smile. He relaxed, tension steeping out of his shoulders. He looked like sunshine, like sweetness and Kyoko couldn’t believe this kind boy lied to her and he expected what… forgiveness? 

But forgiveness was long way from coming. 

It was too much, far too much. 

The minute she could slip away, she did. Finding a quiet corner to… what? Sob her eyes out? Hyperventilate? Scream? Let that simmering heat, that fire burning in her soul, come out and burn it all to ashes? 

“Kyoko?” 

Kyoko spun around. There was Ryohei, the older version of him, standing in the doorway. It was strange, seeing him like this. He was even taller than her, looming like a giant tree shielding from the sun. His infectious energy seemed tamer, subdued. But that bright smile she adored was still gleaming on his face. 

“Nii-san,” she said, greeting him softly. 

“Tsuna told you everything?” he asked. 

Kyoko noted the shift in name. It had been ten years. She nodded. 

“He’s a good guy,” Ryohei said, placing a hand on her shoulder. “I know it’s upsetting for you to be here, but know he and I will do our best to protect you.”

Kyoko reached up to cup his face. She could feel the callous on his hands, see the scars on them and on his face. 

“Why… why are you still here?” Kyoko asked. They had nothing to do with the mafia and she knew, _knew_ that her brother, no matter how reckless, wouldn’t get so involved with something so dangerous. 

Thankfully, Ryohei seemed to understand what she was asking. “My Sky asked me to,” he answered in a soft, fond way. “I decided Tsuna was worth laying down my life for and followed after him.” 

The sound of shattering was deafening. It felt so cold, so empty. Everything was falling apart into pieces, a crumbling tower, a breaking illusion. Kyoko clawed her way, trying to hold onto _something_ and failing; it slipping through her fingers like sand. 

This was _wrong_. 

“Nii-san!” Kyoko said, words choking in her throat. She clutched his arm, gripping tight, too afraid to let go. The terror, the disgust, it was nauseating and sickening. 

Ryohei looked alarmed. 

“Oi, Turf-top head. Juudaime is calling a meeting for tomorrow’s attack,” Gokudera interjected at that exact moment. 

Ryohei nodded. “I’ll be right there.” He smiled fondly at Kyoko, picking her up to swing her around like always. “Don’t worry Kyoko, it’ll be over soon.”

And just like that he was gone. 

Kyoko trembled. Too much! Too much! It was her brother, it was Ryohei, that Tsuna was dragging into this mess. It was dangerous and she could not lose him. Not Ryohei. Not to some shady underground war. Her blood boiled, fire raging beneath her skin. The coldness in her heart, the weight and pressure on her shoulders. 

Too much! 

She saw _orange_.

-.-.-.-

Bianchi was a blessing in disguise. 

While the boys were off, training, attacking a base, getting involved danger, guns and death, Kyoko found herself left behind (again). But it was gift waiting to be unwrapped, because for whatever reason, Bianchi took it upon herself to fill in the gaps. 

Instead of Tsuna’s quick and quiet abridged version, Bianchi was practically shoving volumes of knowledge down Kyoko’s throat. She explained in detailed how the mafia worked, the branches of Vongola, the bloodied history, its allies and enemies. Every scrap of detail, from Primo’s rise to Tsuna’s ascension to Decimo. 

She hammered in the Trinisette, the abilities of the Vongola Rings, the Mare Rings and Pacifiers, her own theories and the limited information that she had gathered over the years. Bianchi explained the inner workings of Dying Will Flames, their gifts and curses, every secret that was kept from the public, from lower members and only shared with the upper echelon. 

Kyoko had more knowledge than she knew what to do with. Now had names and explanations and words to describe what she was feeling. That fire that burned so hot under her skin, the color of orange, the instincts that raged, screamed and rebelled. 

She dared not say it aloud, dare not to admit it, but Kyoko was sure she had Sky Flames. They… weren’t, as far as she could tell, as strong as Tsuna’s who had a tutor, who had the bloodline. As far Kyoko knew, their family was as average as they come. Civilians with no connection to the mafia. (Of course who knew for sure. Kyoko hadn’t seen her parents in over four years now and birthday cards don’t cut it.) 

“Why tell me this?” Kyoko asked as Bianchi had proceeded to explain the finer tips of poisons and seducing people. 

“Keep your cards close to your chest,” Bianchi said. Her expression was unreadable; Kyoko couldn’t tell if it was a warning or an understanding. It made her feel uncomfortable, a whisper of death, poison, and caution murmuring in her head. 

“The mafia isn’t some child’s game and while the boys will promise that they will protect you and keep you safe, there is no one who can protect you better than yourself,” Bianchi said. There was wisdom in her words, hard earned and unbroken. 

Here, her expression softened. “I’m a sister too,” Bianchi said. 

Oh. Kyoko clenched her fist and for the first time felt control. Gratefulness bubbled in her chest. Keep things close to her chest. She could and would learn this. 

-.-.-.-

Keep your cards close to your chest. Those became the words that Kyoko lived by, the control she had strived for. No longer was she casted in the storm of life, she could strength herself and guide her way through the choppy waves. Knowledge was power and Bianchi had empowered her in a way that Kyoko was forever grateful.

It was so jarring to land back in the present and look at the current Bianchi. She was so young. Despite her experiences, she still kept a mindset of youth and happy, romantic endings. The trauma that forged her had yet to happen. Kyoko miss the older Bianchi’s wisdom.

(She measured and found present day Bianchi lacking. Shame.) 

Even Haru was stumbling in Kyoko’s measurement of her. Haru who went through the same horror story as her, who came out still believing in a better tomorrow and a renewed faith. Haru who seemed so blinded to reality of the danger that came with the mafia. That they were nothing more than bait of an older Tsuna, a hostage, a pawn piece. 

Kyoko withdrew just a little. Not enough to be noticed, but promised herself to let her get so misled again. She couldn’t go completely, not without Ryohei and she would die before abandoning him. 

She had never been so glad that it was reflexive to smile. These days, just looking at Tsuna sent her stomach rolling, every instinct screaming at her to do _something_. (She tried not to think of the gleam of her mechanical pencil and how it would be so easy to stab it into Tsuna’s neck.) 

But the sound of shattering in echoed in her mind. She couldn’t shake a sinking feeling that something was going horribly wrong. 

And of course it did.

“I’m going to Italy, Kyoko!” Ryohei announced brightly. 

Kyoko faltered, panicking setting in. Italy? Now? It was the middle of the school year? Why? Because of Tsuna? Thousands of questions raced in her mind, dread sinking her stomach and chest constricting tight. 

“Why?” Kyoko managed to croaked out. 

“Tsuna is meeting his grandfather for his inheritance ceremony!” Ryohei answered. 

Goosebumps broke out on her skin. Every fiber of her being demanded to keep Ryohei, here and as far away from Tsuna as possible. 

“Why are you going?” Kyoko asked. 

“He’s a good guy and has asked me to join his ceremony,” Ryohei said so earnestly. 

No. No. He was not a good guy! “He’s just using you,” Kyoko blurted out. 

Her heart dropped as that familiar stubborn looked appeared on Ryohei’s face. “That isn’t nice, Kyoko,” Ryohei said with disappointed frown.

“Nii-san, it’s the mafia! It’s dangerous and going with Tsuna is going to get you killed one day,” Kyoko pleaded, desperately trying to convince Ryohei of reason.

Her brother was a smart and brilliant man. He had to be able to see the truth, the lies that were blinding his reality. 

“Then he will need someone to watch his back,” Ryohei answered, crossing her arms. 

Ryohei always believed in heroes. “No,” Kyoko said. “No, no, no! Nii-san! This isn’t a game. It doesn’t have to be you. There are others.” Tsuna had other Guardians he could rely on. 

Her words were falling on deaf ears. Ryohei’s brows furrowed in even more stubborn determination and she knew she would not be able to convince him that Tsuna did not have his best interest at heart. 

“Why you?” Kyoko asked, voice cracking. 

“Because he needs me,” Ryohei answered. 

“You’re my brother!” Kyoko screamed. “I need you more!” 

Ryohei pulled her in a tight hug. “I’m always going to be your brother. This is… different. I don’t expect you to understand, but it is the path I’ve picked.” 

She pounded at his chest, hot tears falling from her face. No, it was Ryohei who didn’t understand. This was a death sentence and he didn’t see it. 

“I have to go,” Ryohei said, gently pulling away from her. 

“No!” Kyoko shouted, clinging tight. She didn’t care she was throwing a tantrum like a child. She didn’t care that it looked stupid and silly and was annoying the neighbors. She couldn’t let him go, wouldn’t let him go. She-!

The door slammed shut. 

Kyoko sank to the floor, teetering on an invisible edge. Everything felt like it was on fire, burning and consuming her from the inside out. Everything felt so dangerously cold, empty, echoing, and ultimately so numb. The sound of shattering, the sound of breaking, vibrating, crescendoing, louder until it was deafening. She sobbed, chest heaving and tears falling. She tried so hard, clinging and holding tight and yet it was still slipping and falling, breaking and shattering and-

_**Snap!** _

-.-.-

Put enough pressure to something and no matter strong it was, snapping was inevitable. Gravity was unforgiving, relentless and merciless. Press and press and press, push and push and push, until the ground was uneven, until the edge of the horizon loom in the distance, until everything shattered beyond repair.

Something had gone wrong, but Kyoko couldn’t find it in herself to care. 

She watched, numb and smile reflexive, as life continued on. Haru continued to upbeat and happy. Ryohei continued with his friendship with Tsuna. Tsuna continued to smile her fondly. It was loud, it was bright, it was chaotic and energetic.

It wasn’t hers. 

There was a whisper in her head, a jealous cry of ‘how dare’. There was a stray thought of how easy it would be. There was a dark thrill, an ugly streak of possessiveness as Tsuna grew closer and Ryohei grew farther. There was anger, there was rage. 

There was that orange fire, those _Sky Flames,_ that burned so bright, so hot it scorched her skin. They demanded Ryohei to come back. They demanded Tsuna to pay in blood. They demanded justice and vengeance in the same breath. 

Where had things gone wrong? 

Kyoko watched and it just so happened at that exact moment Reborn fired off a bullet, just narrowly missing Ryohei who had been pulling Tsuna into a headlock. She froze, the penny dropping. 

Reborn. 

This all started with Reborn’s arrival. 

Kyoko blinked slowly and took a fortifying deep breath. And in an instant, a plan snapped together in her mind. 

-.-.-.-

Slow and steady. Bianchi, future Bianchi from that nightmare timeline, had mentioned it once that a woman’s best weapon was her patience and her cunning. 

“Let your meal come to you, bait them out and wait like a spider ready to pounce,” Bianchi said. “They won’t notice they’re wandering straight into your web and you’ll strike hard and fast, poisoning them before they even know it.” 

Kyoko could be patient. She waited so long as a child, for that pat on her head, for that proud smile, for a phone call that never happened, for dwindling postcards and unsigned birthday cards. There are days where she believed she was still waiting, still hoping, still holding out. Kyoko knew plenty about patience. 

Kyoko could be cunning. She never let it slipped about her abilities. Never let her true feelings surface. She kept her cards close to her chest, her persona of an airhead being an easy thing to slip into. All the while, she listened and watched and observed. So many secrets handed to her because they thought she was meek, that they thought she was harmless. 

It led her to the Mare Rings. 

A crime of opportunity. An incident where Reborn happened to force them all (at gunpoint no less) onto a plane and to Italy for Nono’s birthday. Tsuna screeched the entire way, and Kyoko numbly followed, smile plastered to her face. 

A request by Aria to meet Tsuna and a bashful Tsuna inviting her along. 

Eventually, behind closed doors Tsuna and Aria retreated. Kyoko waved off help, waved off the offer of a tour of the mansion. They let her, believing she meant no harm, had no ability to act. The fools.

Kyoko closed her eyes, listening. There was siren’s call, a whisper in her mind. Her Sky Flames hummed, purring like a satisfied cat. 

When she opened her eyes again, there rested in her hands was a blue velvet box. She didn’t need to open it to know what it was. Instead, the box was slipped into her bag and she wandered back to the main entrance where Tsuna was waiting. 

“Had a good time?” Tsuna asked with a fond smile. 

Kyoko beamed. “Yes! Thanks for inviting me, Tsu-kun.” 

(If she went home and disguised the ring with long orange petals that resembled orange lilies and used it as a hairpin to her growing long hair, well, Haru wasn’t the only one with a creative bone in her body.) 

-.-.-.-

Kyoko hummed. The Mare Ring felt comfortable, a source of power, a good weight. This would be her new pillar of strength, the thing she could lean on. 

The weather was hot and sticky but Kyoko didn’t mind. These days her Flames ran cold, colder than arctic, colder than ice. Around her, everyone kept charging forward. Status Quo was chaos, as Reborn inflicted training session onto training session to Tsuna. Haru trailing after him like a cheerleader Tsuna didn’t deserve. Ryohei spending even less time with her, not even realizing he was pulling away. Lambo crying and explosions and fights were just an everyday thing. 

For how chaotic everything was, it was peaceful. These were the days of youth, carefree and joyful. 

“Ciassou, Kyoko-chan,” Reborn greeted her.

Kyoko smiled, beaming brightly. “Good morning Reborn-san. How goes Tsuna’s training today?” 

Reborn let out a long suffering sigh. “Dame-Tsuna has a long way to go,” he said. He sounded exasperated, but Kyoko could only think he sounded fond. So the hitman had a heart. 

Kyoko giggled. “Tsu-kun will do fine,” she said. _‘You will not’_ went unsaid. 

Reborn however, gave her a sly grin. “What did my student do to deserve you?” 

She tilted her head to the side. “What do you mean? Tsu-kun is a friend!” she said with a guileless smile. 

Reborn stared at her for a fraction of a second before letting out another sigh. He tugged his fedora down, shielding his expression, mumbling something she couldn't quite catch. 

“It is good that you are here,” Reborn said. 

“There is no other place I would rather be,” Kyoko chirped. Lies. She could list a dozen places where she rather go. 

Reborn left her with a nod as Kyoko waved her goodbyes. 

Soon.

-.-.- 

Hot and cold. A raging fire and an icy bite. Swings of positive and negative, a trial in the dark. 

“Hey, Tsu-kun. I don’t understand. What’s the difference between your Zero Point Breakthrough and your Zero Point Breakthrough - Revised?” Kyoko asked. 

Tsuna laughed nervously, rubbing the back of his neck. “I don’t really understand it myself; Reborn tried to explain it to me. So you know Hyper Dying Will Mode, right?”

Kyoko nodded. “You said it allows you fight calmly.” 

“Right, Hyper Dying Will Mode removes all your internal limiters, heightens your senses and awareness while letting you fight calmly,” Tsuna said. “In a lot of ways, despite Dying Will Flames being a fire and thus hot, it’s a lot like going cold…? I guess? I don’t know really how to explain it.” 

He flailed his arms helplessly as Kyoko huffed, amused. It was kinda cute. 

“So, because it’s like going cold, that’s where the ice for Zero Point Breakthrough comes from. I kinda… force my Flames into the negatives and that causes ice form? Zero Point Breakthrough - Revised is the same thing except instead of ice, it’s like a vacuum? That’s where the drainage and absorption comes from?” Tsuna explained. 

“Hmmm, interesting,” Kyoko said with a nod. “Thanks for explaining it, Tsu-kun!”

Hot and cold. A raging fire and an icy bite. Swings of positive and negative, a trial in the dark. She could do this. As Reborn always said, there was nothing you couldn’t do with your Dying Will. 

-.-.-

The weight of Mare Ring, heavy and strong. The sound of shattering and cracking ringing in her ears. The hot and cold of her Flames. The singing, the promise of justice and pain. 

Five years of watching. Five years of finishing high school, before Reborn practically walked them all by gunpoint to college in Italy. Five years of growth. Five years of planning. Six months since the murmurs of Tsuna’s succession started off again. 

Tonight was a celebration, a party. Confirmation of Tsuna’s position as heir, his crowning to come later, after his college graduation. 

Kyoko smiled as she nodded and agreed. Barbed words and impolite remarks were whispered behind her back. Subtle digs and insults laced into every false smile. Kyoko took them all, never allowing her own mask to falter and crack. 

Slowly she hummed, picking up two cups of coffee. Hot and cold, her Flames burned. 

“Hello Reborn-san,” Kyoko said with a smile. She followed his gaze, looking over to where Tsuna and his Guardians (her brother!) were roughhousing. “Always so energetic, aren’t they?” She handed Reborn a cup which he accepted. 

“They’re still brats,” he said, sipping the coffee. 

“You like the chaos,” Kyoko teased, ignoring the way her heart pounded, the blood rushing. 

“One day, you will be out there, helping Tsuna breaking up the fights,” Reborn said. 

“Why would I do that?” Kyoko asked mildly. She had no interest in helping Tsuna. It wasn’t her fault that Tsuna couldn’t get his Guardians under control. 

(Ryohei was hers first and just look. Nothing but evidence that Tsuna wasn’t the Sky for her brother.) 

Reborn lightly scoffed and sipped the coffee. 

Kyoko felt her Flames flare, burning bright, burning cold. She felt the subtle way they interlace with Reborn’s Flames, gobbling away, ebbing and flowing like a rising tide, slowly eating away. 

Slow and steady. Patience and cunning. 

“Kyoko-chan!” Haru said. 

Kyoko smiled and bid Reborn a fond farewell. “Thank you for everything, Reborn-san.” 

She meant it.

-.-.-

To her surprise, Reborn’s death wasn’t immediately discovered. 

For once, the World’s Greatest Hitman’s paranoia worked in her favor. Reborn had left the party, disappearing into the night, and never reappeared. 

Kyoko still felt a smile curl on her lips because she could feel how her Flames consumed and consumed, devouring and gorging on Reborn’s Flames. There was so much and she felt like she was walking on Cloud Nine for days. 

It was addicting and a shame once it finally vanished, completely wrung out and gone. She knew he was dead. 

“I’m worried,” Tsuna told her. 

Kyoko patted him on the shoulder. “I’m sure he’ll turn up. He always does.”

“But this is the longest he’s gone,” Tsuna said, hands twisting, fretting. He looked around, as if expecting Reborn to pop out of the bushes, laughing at ‘Dame-Tsuna’. 

“I’m sure you’ll find him,” Kyoko said. 

She wanted to see the look on Tsuna’s face. 

-.-.-

She knew they had found him when the whispers started. 

_“Drained away completely.”_

_“Connection to the pacifier?”_

_“What about the other Arcobaleno?”_

_“Just like Luce…”_

No one told her the truth, still trying to shield her away from the darker parts of the Mafia. Normally her blood would be burning at the indignity of it, but then…

But then, Tsuna came up to her, expression crumpled, so broken and falling apart. It was like his entire world was torn apart, as if he was now missing a limb. 

_‘Good,’_ Kyoko thought viciously. _‘Let’s see how you like losing one your Elements.’_

Because she was older, wiser, and more in tuned. She could sense that if Reborn had let it, he would have fitted into the slot of Tsuna’s Sun with ease. There would have been no need to steal Ryohei. She and Ryohei could have been happy, left alone without the mafia and bloodstained hands. 

But no, Reborn was too prideful and Tsuna was too weak. 

It made her resent them even more. 

-.-.-

There was talk of marriage, of wedding bells, white dresses and golden rings. Kyoko let her smile become a fixed fixture on her face and tried not to scream. 

How can there be a marriage when there wasn’t even a confession? How can there be love when there wasn’t even a first date? 

How _dare_ they assume. How _dare_ they think they can plan her life, dictate who she could marry or not.) 

How _dare_ they assume she would agree to marry the man who stole her brother from her. 

“Kyoko-chan,” Tsuna said meekly, kindly. “D-Do you want to go a-a-a d-d-date?” He sputtered and hands twisting. 

It was cute. 

If they had been anyone else, if Tsuna hadn’t been the heir to mafia blood-soaked throne, if Ryohei hadn’t been stolen from her, maybe, maybe, she would have considered it. 

But her heart was too frozen, her Flames burn so cold and there are echoes in her head that scream her frustrations. 

Did he even like her? Why not Haru who would marry him in a heartbeat? Was it just him bowing to the whims of others? Too weak, unfit to rule the throne that was being handed him. 

Still, Kyoko felt her smile stretch wide. “Of course, Tsu-kun.”

Keep your cards close to your chest. 

-.-.-

Tsuna was chattering, arms flailing excitedly. It was nice. The stars, a blanket and them. For a date, it wasn’t bad. 

But Kyoko wasn’t so forgiving. 

“Thank you,” Tsuna said. “You’ve been so strong, Kyoko-chan. And just… thank you. Losing Reborn was painful, but seeing you smile every day gave me the courage to carry on.” 

“Of course, Tsuna,” Kyoko said with a large smile. 

She overturned plans in her head, wondering. Now would be a perfect moment but it would link her to Tsuna in a way that she never wanted. After all, Ryohei would probably not forgive her if he had found out she had killed Tsuna. No, she needed away to her hands… mostly clean. 

_‘Patience,’_ older Bianchi's voice whispered in her head. 

The Mare Sky ring hummed, thrumming with the power she had long grown used to. Its siren song grew a little bit louder each day, a warm comfort to her cold heart. 

Kyoko could wait. 

All Kyoko wanted was her brother back and to go _home._

-.-.-

Another party, another Vongola Style madness. Sometimes Kyoko wondered why they never seem to tire of it all. So loud, so noisy, so chaotic. 

Well, it was Tsuna's coronation so maybe that was why. 

The alcohol was excessive, the guest list extensive. There were dozens of guests, allies and ‘friends’ mingling with each other. Dino stood, trying to coax Hibari into a conversation. Hibari who looked like he was just seconds away from snapping. Bianchi waltzing with a disgruntled Gokudera. A greedy Lambo tugging at Haru’s hand. Yamamoto’s bright loud laughter at whatever Squalo was saying. Xanxus sipping wine in the corner, a smiling Tsuna not far from his side. Nono and his Guardians looking fondly out into the crowd. 

And right on cue, yet another “friendly” brawl had broken out between Tsuna's Guardians and the Varia. 

“Kyoko-chan! Look out!” 

Tsuna tackled her to the ground just as one of Bel's knives came flying toward her. 

What happened next occurred only in a few seconds, but it unfolded so terribly slowly in Kyoko's mind. An _**opportunity**_. It was easy enough for her to pull the knife she was carrying (the knife Reborn insisted on her carrying) and in one swift moment, she slit Tsuna's throat. 

And Tsuna… 

“Kyo-ko,” Tsuna croaked, eyes opening wide. Then he collapsed on her, bleeding out. 

The world exploded in fire. 

There was one thing that Kyoko didn't know about Sky Flames. 

Perfectly harmonized Sky and Element sets are so closely intertwined. It was impossible to remove a single piece, too closely blended together like trying to separate the flour from cake batter, impossible. 

For all of their conflicting personalities, Tsuna and his Guardians were perfectly harmonized. Reborn ensured it, built all the necessary blocks, whittled and molded and _shaped_. (Ryohei was never a perfect fit for Tsuna, but Reborn had made it so, like forcing a square peg through a circle hole.) 

And just like a Sky who snapped when their Element was taken, an Element who lost their Sky traumatically often went _berserk._

(In another world, Reborn _would_ have been a perfect fit for Tsuna. But the loss of Luce left deep mental scars and out of self-preservation, Reborn didn't dare to get close to another Sky. It still didn't make what he had done right though.) 

Hibari, always so bloodthirsty, was the first to snap. His usually iron tight control gone and in one moment, that somewhat _friendly_ fighting between friends changed into something far deadlier as Hibari hit Dino with enough force to shatter his ribs. 

Dino crumpled as Yamamoto swung his sword, felling everyone around him. Blood spattered against the walls. Smoke filled the room as Gokudera followed up with handful of bombs. 

People scattered, confusion mounting. Screams bounced throughout the room, terror rising. 

“Something’s wrong!” Squalo shouted. 

Xanxus threw a look at Kyoko who was still clutching to Tsuna’s cooling body. He saw her bloodstained hands and drew conclusions. 

“Shit, baby boss went down,” Xanxus said. “We-” He didn’t get a chance to finish before Hibari was on him, Cloud Flames spewing. 

Kyoko blinked, watching the carnage unfold. Watched as Ryohei hit Haru with enough force to snap her neck. Watched Lambo fall to Bel and Levi’s combined attacks but not before Romario fell to his Lightning charged attack. Watched Chrome brought down Nono and his Guardians, strangled by the vines she manifested. Watched as Gokudera set off explosion after explosion, catching Lussuria; the Sun’s body twisting and wrangling, falling and bleeding. Watched Yamamoto drove a sword through Iemitsu. Watched as dozens of guests and allies fall. 

Watched as Xanxus shot Ryohei in the chest, watched as Ryohei fell to the ground, watched as the light faded from Ryohei’s eyes.

Kyoko **screamed**. 

Her Flames burst out of her, the Mare Sky Ring sang of destruction, amplifying and echoing, an ocean of orange Flames that engulfed, consuming all. Scorching so hot, so terribly hot, burning everything. She ran across the room, reaching out for her brother.

This wasn’t what she wanted. 

This wasn’t what she wanted at all. 

“Nii-san! Nii-san!!” 

Kyoko wailed, gripping Ryohei’s bleeding body. Her hands coated crimson red, words tumbling from her lips, pleading and begging. 

Not her brother. 

Not Ryohei. 

No. 

Her heart raged and screamed. Tears fell and yet nothing changed. No matter how much she begged, no matter how much power she poured in, Ryohei remained still in her hand. 

Kyoko cried and cried and cried. Cried for hours, for days. Let her Sky Flames run rampant, let it consumed, let it burn. 

She didn’t want this. 

Kyoko didn’t realize the world had gone quiet except for the cackle of her Flames. 

_“Vongola Manor has been burned down to the ground!”_

_“What happened to boss?”_

_“Sky Flames?!”_

_“Vongola Decimo’s fault? It was his coronation.”_

_“No, there’s a young woman in the center.”_

_“A survivor! Grab her!”_

A blur, a haze and Kyoko’s Flames lashed out. 

_“She killed Aulio!”_

_“She’s leeching them dry with her Flames.”_

_“How?!”_

_“Don’t get close!”_

Noise! Leave her alone! 

Kyoko screamed, screamed until her throat was hoarse. 

She wanted her brother back. 

“Give him back,” she whispered. 

_“It’s still burning. It’s been days!”_

_“She’s already killed over thirty people. No one can get close.”_

_“Is she a Sky that snapped?”_

_“How are we supposed to put her down?”_

_“She can’t burn forever! We just have to wait.”_

What was the point of all of this if Ryohei died? Why did she try so hard? Losing her brother was never in the cards, was never in the plan. She rejected this outcome. She didn’t want it. 

Someone broke through her Flames, parting them like Moses parted the Red Sea, stepping in front of Kyoko. 

Kyoko looked up. 

Aria stared down at her, features stony. “Sasagawa Kyoko, what did you _do_?” 


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This took forever to write despite me know exactly where it was going. OTL

What did she do? What did she do?! She had done nothing!

Kyoko let out a bitter laugh. Her throat was raw from screaming, her tears spent and she was done with crying. All that was left was just anger.

None of this meant anything without Ryohei. None of it!

The sounds of something breaking, shattering in her mind rang like a tolling bell, deafening.

“You took the Mare Rings,” Aria said. “How?” She looked down at Kyoko, thunderous and disapprovaling.

Kyoko reflexively snarled, unwilling to submit. Everyone demanded she submit. That she give up on Ryohei, that she marry Tsuna, that she be perfectly okay with the mafia and this bloodsoaked life they had cornered her into.

Mare Sky Ring, still pinned in her hair, sang and sang and sang. It crooned, destruction whispering in her mind.

“I had no idea you were a Sky,” Aria said. “So much power in one so young and so many have already fallen to your tantrum.”

Tantrum?! Her brother was dead! The only piece of her family that she cared about. Her Niisan! Ryohei was **dead**. What did Kyoko have left in this world?

Nothing but Sky Flames.

But Kyoko had no used for a power that took away her brother.

Right…

Right.

If it wasn’t for Dying Will Flames, she wouldn’t have lost her brother. If Ryohei didn’t have Sun Flames, he would have never been picked up by Reborn and given to Tsuna. If she didn’t have Sky Flames, she wouldn’t feel so empty and cold.

Dying Will Flames were equally to blame as Reborn and Tsuna were.

“I’ll put you out of your misery,” Aria said. Her orange pacifier hung from her neck, gleaming. She pulled out a gun, taking aim at Kyoko.

No.

No. Kyoko would see that the world was rid of Dying Will Flames first.

A cold crept in, sinking into the ground, sinking into her bones.

“No,” Kyoko said.

“Still coherent enough to form words,” Aria said. “No matter.”

“No,” Kyoko said. “ _ **No**_. I have no need for your arrogance.”

Her Sky Flames crystalized into the unbreakable ice of Zero Point Breakthrough, piercing Aria’s body from all around. Aria’s mistake was stepping into Kyoko’s Flames, well into her range.

Kyoko looked up, expression cold as ice.

“Y-you’re dangerous,” Aria said, blood dripping down the ice. She hung in the air, held by the pillars of ice, pinned like a pincushion.

Kyoko sneered. “And it’s people like you who made me like this,” she hissed.

“ARIA!”

Kyoko felt the crackle of Lightning Flames, saw the blond haired man leaping towards her.

“Gamma, no!” Aria called out.

Gamma stood no chance against Kyoko. Mare Sky Ring pulsed and Kyoko felt the direction of the ice spears change. In a blink of an eye, they pierced Gamma, straight through the chest. Blood rained down on Kyoko and Aria.

“Thank you Aria-san. You’ve shown me the truth. This world has no need for Dying Will Flames,” Kyoko said. “Not when this power causes such terrible arrogance. Not when this powers steals from others, breaks families and taints everything.”

Aria looked at her with wide eyes. “No, Kyoko-chan. You don’t know what you’re talking about.”

Kyoko looked at her, her brown eyes almost orange in the light. A wide smile spread across her face. “I know exactly what I’m talking about,” she said.

It was a simple plan, the next step. Prevent another tragedy like Ryohei-niisan from happening again. And if there were no Dying Will Flames, it could never happen.

Echoing and ringing in her mind, shattering and twisting and breaking.

“Thank you for your help, Aria-san,” Kyoko said.

Then her Sky Flames swallowed Aria whole.

-.-.-

Unbeknownst to Kyoko, her killing Aria had far reaching consequences. Namely the other Arcobaleno.

The lost of Reborn was a heavy blow. Reborn earned his title of World's Greatest Hitman, and it wasn't just because of his skills, but because of the purity of his Flames. He _carried_ the majority of weight of the Arcobaleno curse, for Aria's Flames were never as strong as her mother's.

With Reborn gone, the weight of the curse pressed down on the others heavily, weakening them considerably. With Aria's death, it ensured their demise.

Viper faded first. Xanxus was gone, and while they weren't a complete set, the Varia was still a set. Aria's death sapped the remainder of Viper's strength and trapped in bed in the Varia Manor, Viper passed away, almost peacefully.

No one noticed Verde had vanished. The mad scientist always locked himself away for weeks at time. It would be months before any of his colleagues would even question where he gone. No one would know the truth, Verde’s corpse locked in one of his many secret hideouts.

Fon had accepted a mission at the same time of Aria’s death. His target came out triumphant, carrying Fon’s head.

Skull crashed, hitting a gas tank on the offside of the road, exploding in a ball of fire that was almost fitting for a stuntman of his caliber.

Colonnello went berserk. Half of his curse was shared with Lal and she fell with the rest under Kyoko's Flames. Aria’s death shattered him beyond repair. Thus Mafia Land fell to his bullets until no one was left alive and Colonnello laid, dying and burning out, alone on the beach.

The mighty Arcobaleno fell.

And Kawahira began to make his move.

-.-.-

Kyoko woke to a hollowness in her chest. She let out a choking laughter. How many days had it been? She didn't know, had stopped counting the days since Ryohei had died.

It had been a blur. People launched attacks against her, but Kyoko didn't remember anything about it beyond the warm blood trickling down her hands and the cold icy touch of Zero Point Breakthrough.

She remembered their screams, remembered their accusations, but retained nothing of the words said.

Kyoko left behind a trail of bodies.

Mare Sky Ring sung. It guided her, leading her somewhere and she followed. Instincts hummed and she followed. Her Flames continue to burn hot and cold under her skin, but burn freely they did.

‘Harmony,’ the Mare Sky Ring sang.

Kyoko listened. Let her feet carry her.

Somewhere, deep in her mind, a logical part whispered, ‘madness’ but the larger part of Kyoko didn't care. Let the madness consume her. She had no need for this world without her brother.

Dimly she recognized the building she was marching into. Chains rattled. White bandages being torn to shreds. The scent of death and decay, mixing together.

Kyoko poured her heart out. Let the grief, anger and rage consume. Mare Sky Ring gleamed so brightly, fueling the madness.

She crushed the dark pacifier beneath her feet and marched straight to the iron door that held her target.

A single punch shattered the glass, water spilling out everywhere. The body dropped, free, untangling from the chains.

Mukuro stared up at Kyoko, a sneer on his face. “Come to add to your count?” he asked.

Kyoko’s Sky Flames sang, a sharp and dangerous thrill. She merely smiled.

“Just like your brother, a stupid smile on your face,” Mukuro snarled.

Kyoko’s Sky Flames turned cold. The water in the room froze. Spirals of ice, jagged and sharp. “Don’t speak of Niisan like that,” she said.

Mukuro bared his teeth. “Can’t accept he’s dead?”

Anger howled in Kyoko’s heart. “He was dead because Reborn dragged us into the mafia world! Because Tsuna took him from me! Because of his Dying Will Flames!”

Something shifted in Mukuro’s expression, something she couldn’t read.

It hardly mattered. The Mare Sky Ring sang, ‘Harmony.’ It felt like a piece of stone had been running over uneven ground had finally found its slot, locking into place.

Kyoko took a deep breath.

And clarity clicked into place.

She felt the indigo purple Flames, felt it bow before her. Instinctively, she reached out with her own Flames, felt it swallow up the indigo Flame, locking it into place, stringing it up like chains.

“W-what did you do?” Mukuro choked out, turning a pale white, blood draining from his place.

“My Mist,” Kyoko cooed. Yes, yes now it made sense. Mukuro wasn’t Tsuna’s, was never Tsuna’s in the first place. That was Chrome.

It was like a breath of fresh air.

Clarity sharpened, realigning her thoughts into a crystal pattern. Right, she couldn’t forget. Keep her cards close to her chest, wait patiently. She had a new goal to plan for. Dying Will Flames, if it wasn’t for Dying Will Flames Reborn couldn’t have taken an interest in her brother. If it wasn’t for Dying Will Flames, her brother wouldn’t have died.

Kyoko smiled down at Mukuro.

“Come, we have a lot to plan.”

-.-.-

“This is madness!”

Kyoko tilted her head. Rokudo Mukuro was actually a very funny guy once she spent more time with him. Why was Tsuna ever afraid of him?

“Why is that?” Kyoko asked. “Tsuna once said your goal was burn down the mafia. How is burning everyone with Dying Will Flames any different?”

Mukuro reeled away from her as if she had hit him. A smile twitched on her lips. He was just so silly.

“There’s gutting out evil and there’s a plan so insane that it can’t possibly work,” Mukuro hissed. “You honestly expect to hunt down every Dying Will Flame user? Every single one? That’s madness.”

“Aren’t we all a little mad?” Kyoko chirped. She didn’t see what Mukuro was so worked up about. After all, he of all people had to know about broken reflections and shattered pieces. He had pieced himself together with Chrome, walked away from his own physical body enough times, and bled more blood than anyone else.

“I-” Mukuro started, expression twisting into something Kyoko couldn’t recognize.

There was that indigo Flame burning so bright, struggling. Kyoko felt her own Flames respond, locking it down even further.

“You’ll help me, won’t you, Mukuro-kun?” Kyoko asked. She reached out to stroke his cheek gently. Her newest ally.

“... _Yes, Sky._ ”

-.-.-

She was dreaming.

_“You awake, Kyoko?” Ryohei asked, ruffling her hair._

_Kyoko beamed. “Of course!”_

_“Don’t forget, I have practice today. I’ll be home late,” Ryohei said. “The championship is right around the corner!”_

_The championship right. Ryohei had been practicing so hard. His debut fight had gone so well, and now he was just one match away from winning the title. This was her brother’s dream becoming reality._

_Happiness hummed in her heart, bursting like fireworks. This was what she dreamt of, the simple quiet life with her brother by her side._

She woke with tears in her eyes.

-.-.-

Simple in theory, her plan was. In practice, it was much harder. But Mukuro’s help it made things infinity easier. For starters, as someone who was born and raised in the mafia, he had the basic knowledge of the existing famiglias. With his help, she found it easier and easier to hunt down each members.

The Mare Sky Ring continue to sing. Kyoko felt her Flames burn so terribly, terribly hot, so terribly, terribly cold. Finding elements was instinctive at this point, but none of them were right, none of them were her Sun. None of them were her brother.

Ryohei-nii.

“Isn’t this enough?” Mukuro asked, sagging against his trident. His arm hung loosely, broken probably and his clothes stained a dark crimson red, soaked in blood.

Kyoko flicked her wrist, shaking loose the blood coating her hand. “No? Why do you think this would be enough?”

Mukuro snarled. “Why do this? What is the point? At this rate there will be no one left!”

“There’s no point without Ryohei-nii,” Kyoko said.

“There’s no point without Chrome!” Mukuro snapped, chest heaving. “And yet you took her away from me.”

“She sided with Tsunayoshi,” Kyoko said.

“Sawada Tsunayoshi was a fool,” Mukuro said bitterly

“He was,” Kyoko agreed.

Mukuro looked at her in shock.

Why was he surprised? Tsunayoshi was weak. He willingly joined the mafia, let himself be dragged along by Reborn, _stole her brother_. Kyoko would never forgive that.

“We should continue, yes?” Kyoko asked with a smile.

“You- you can’t,” Mukuro started.

Kyoko blinked slowly. Indigo Flames surged and quieted, quailing under the weight of her Flames.

Mukuro struggled, hissing. Finally his shoulders sagged. “I need a doctor,” he said instead, through grit teeth.

Kyoko tilted her head. “Very well, hospital first.”

She looked off into the distance, reaching and expanding her senses. It seemed that little cluster of Flame Users will have to wait. For now.

-.-.-

Miles away, Kawahira cursed. The Arcobaleno candidates were disappearing. He didn’t know what was going on, but Dying Will Flame Users were dropping like bugs. Pitiful, this was the extent of humanity’s fable strength?

Perhaps it was time to start Project Eden.

-.-.-

She was dreaming.

_“Kyoko,” Ryohei said. “Hurry up!”_

_“Coming!” Kyoko shouted. She came running down the stairs, tying her hair back. Her bag was already swinging over her shoulder as she came to a stop, giving her brother a beaming smile._

_She tutted as she reach out to adjust the tie of Ryohei’s uniform. “So messy,” she scolded. “It’s your graduation day! You should look more presentable.”_

_Ryohei just laughed. “If you say so.”_

The dreams were getting harder to bear.

-.-.-

Quietly the world shook.

Deceptively quiet. Deep currents under the still water surface. Reflected on the surface, life remained unchanged, rolling gently like waves upon the sand. But in the dark, deep currents churred. The Italian Mafia disappeared in a matter of weeks. It left the police baffled, trying to understand. It was a massacre, best they could figure out. As if someone, or rather something, had single handedly marched, setting all the known famiglia on fire.

Ashes to ashes, dust to dust.

What was once the feared and powerful Italian Mafia was gone. Any survivors retreated so far into the shadows, they were nowhere to be found.

Crime plummet, swan diving and no one questioned it too much. Good riddance, the police thought, those criminal were the worst of the worst. No one would miss them.

And yet all around the world, kidnappings slowly rose. But no one noticed.

Who noticed when the first that vanished were the homeless?

Who noticed when the first that vanished were the old?

Who noticed when the first that vanished were those alone?

Kurokawa Hana back into a wall, trapped and fear pounding in her head. The man in the iron mask loomed over, hand extended.

“Who are you?” Hana said, eyes darting for a way to escape. No one around, no way to get around this man.

“You will make the final addition to the Storm Flames Garden,” the man said.

She tried to scream, yet no sounds fell from her lips.

-.-.-

She was dreaming.

_“I have to go, Kyoko! I’m going to be late for my job,” Ryohei said, beaming._

_“Wait- nii-san!” Kyoko rushed after him._

_He slipped out of her hands._

She woke up sobbing.

-.-.-

Mukuro never claimed to be model of sanity. He knew his own limits, had seen horrors and things beyond belief. He suffered under the hands of mad scientists, been reincarnated over six times, and knew somewhere deep in his heart that you didn’t go through something like that without coming out a little broken.

Mukuro knew insanity, knew what lurked deep in people’s heads and hearts.

Sasagawa Kyoko was _insane_.

It was staggering to come to that realization. She fully intended to kill every Dying Will Flame User, hunting them down and burning them with her Sky Flames until they were nothing but dust on the wind. Her Sky Flames sang a song of destruction and if it had been anyone else, Mukuro would have thought it was beautiful.

Instead, it was terrifying and Mukuro could only watch in growing horror as she wiped away every group they came across. There was no hesitation, not even a single consideration. No one was spared, not a single drop of mercy. Just an all consuming fire, brighting so terribly bright.

How he had missed this, how anyone had missed what a powerful Sky Sasagawa Kyoko was, he didn’t know.

He choked as the stench of burnt flesh filled the air again. The entire surroundings was charred black, the orange Flames still gorging, consuming. Against the fiery dancing lights, Kyoko glowed, madness gleaming in her eyes.

“Coming, Mukuro-kun?” she chirped, happily, cheerfully. As if she was asking if he would like to join her to a trip to the mall. As if she was no different than the girl that Mukuro had seen through Chrome’s eyes.

He wanted to say no. But before he could even form the word, her Sky Flames came, oppressing and pushing him down, shackling him tighter than the straps the Estraneo scientists used to use to hold him down.

“Of course,” he choked out, the vice grip around his throat barely loosening.

Sasagawa Kyoko was insane and for once, Mukuro felt fear.

Who would stop her?

-.-.-

She was dreaming...

_Kyoko blinked, staring down at the gravestone that held her name. She tilted her head, trying to understand. A headstone? With her name?_

_“Ky-Kyoko?!”_

_Kyoko turned just in time to see Ryohei engulf her in a head. “Nii-san?”_

_Ryohei pulled away. Kyoko blinked at the tired look at that didn’t match her sunny bright brother. The dark circles her under his eyes were so foreign, she almost wasn’t sure this was her brother._

_But her Sky Flames sang. This was her brother, his Sun Flames twisting and harmonizing like a rising crescendo, a perfect song._

_“Don’t leave me,” Ryohei said, sobbing._

_Kyoko clutched tight to him and refused to let go. No one would take her brother from her again._

The world splintered, the sky cracked and Kawahira turned, sensing a powerful Sky Flame and Sun Flame singing.

-.-.-

Hana sagged against her bonds, her soul scrubbed raw. The exhaustion pressed down her, the silver chains intertwined around her arms the only thing holding her up.

How long had it been?

Days?

Weeks?

She peered out, a tiny plastic wall separating her from others. Others, older, young, in plastic cages, too weak to escape. The old were practically bones, wilted like a dried flowers. Dead eyes reflected, many had given up, empty pools that stared blankly out. The rise and fall of their chests were the only sign they were still alive.

Silence reign, where screams used to echo. Little bit little, whittle down and grinded into nothing else. The red glow of the strange fire that was being pulled from their bodies, wrenched from their very souls, was their illumination, the food forced down their throats bland and tasteless.

Hana let loose a dark and broken laugh.

This was how she met her end.

Tears didn’t fall, she had spent all her tears.

This wasn’t what she wanted.

-.-.-

Kyoko was walking on sunshine. She practically skipped, a hum on her lips. Her brother was back!

Her Sky Flames rolled with glee, wrapped in that warm Sun Flames that belonged to Ryohei. This was perfect! Just perfect!

“What did you do?” Mukuro asked, horror written all over his face. “Who is that?”

Kyoko tilted her head. Honestly, Mukuro always sounded so scandalized every time they talked. She had no idea why he was like that. Silly Mukuro. He was always screeching about something. She followed him his finger to where he was pointing. “That’s nii-san,” Kyoko said. “Silly Mukuro.” How could Mukuro mistake him? Ryohei was Ryohei, shining ever so bright, like the Sun he was, unchained and unburdened.

“That is not-! He’s de-”

Kyoko frowned. Her Sky Flames sang, squishing the Indigo colored flames.

Mukuro choked, his words failing.

“Silly Mukuro,” Kyoko said, practically chirping. Why had Tsuna found him so scary? Mukuro was almost adorable.

She skipped off, humming. Everything was perfect. So perfect.

But even perfect things had to come to an end.

-.-.-

“So you’re the one behind this.”

Kyoko blinked, tensing as a man in a trenchcoat and metal hat appeared before her. The Sky Mare Ring was wailing, howling instead of singing. Danger, danger.

“Who are you?” she asked.

“My name is hardly important, but you may call me Checkerface.”

Kyoko frowned. She recognized the orange pacifier in his hands. Kyoko let out a hiss.

“I’ve been looking for replacements for the Arcobaleno for months now," Checkerface said. "For some reason the high quality Flame users had died, even my back up candidates. And while the Gardens have been working, I see before me a powerful Sky, Sun and Mist."

Kyoko howled. No one was going to take her brother from her again.

It was a short battle.

Ryohei, shining bright, launched his attack. But Checkerface earned his position, he was the last for a reason. Unparalleled, unmatched, he swatted Ryohei away like a fly. Kyoko screamed, her Sky Flames lashing out. The Mare Ring wailed, a song of despair, fueling her its power.

It wasn't enough. (It never would be.) The Mare Rings were only a quarter. Checkerface was a master. So old, he knew the ways to wield Dying Will Flames that others had long forgotten.

Mukuro vanished, but Kyoko hardly paid attention to that. Nii-san, Nii-san. She let loose a wave of ice formed by Zero Point Breakthrough. The spikes rising from the ground like pillars. Checkerface, smug, flexed his Dying Will Flames, the ice cracking under the pressure alone. Kyoko howled, summoning her Sky Flames, like a tidal wave and brought it down on him. Checkerface raised his hand, and parted it like Moses parted the Red Sea. With a swift kick, he sent her rolling, over towards Ryohei.

Checkerface loomed over her. Kyoko stood, unwavering, unflinching in front of Ryohei's shining form. ('Don't think- Don't realize that he hadn't move- Don't think!!!')

"Give it up my dear Sky," Checkerface crooned. The orange Pacifier dangled from his fingertips. "I would hate to go through the trouble of breaking your legs, but I will if I must."

Kyoko grit her teeth. 'Keep your cards close to your chest,' Bianchi's voice echoed in her head. She took a deep breath, and held out her hand.

Checkerface smiled and placed the Pacifier in her hand. "That's a good girl."

Kyoko closed her fist over the Pacifier and pumped it full of her Sky Flames. The Mare Sky Ring sang, fueling her intentions.

'You can do anything with your Dying Will,' Reborn had once said. The only lesson she had ever heeded from him.

So Kyoko did the only thing she could. She poured and poured, her entire soul, her entire being into the Pacifier. All of her anger, bristling sharp.

Crack!

The Sky Pacifier split in two, going cold to the touch. And unknown to the both of them, the Mare Sky Ring still pinned in Kyoko's hair crumbled, drained.

Checkerface swore. "You stupid girl! What did you do?!"

Kyoko laughed, sinking to her knees, spent. She had done it. That stupid Pacifier, stealing so much from her. Reborn with the yellow one, taking Ryohei away from her. Aria with the orange one, trying to kill her. She fell back, vision going dim, the last of her Sky Flames fading.

With that Sasagawa Kyoko passed away.

And unbeknownst to her, she got her final wish. Without the Trinisette, Vongola Sky Ring lost to Kyoko's flames, all those months ago, the Mare Sky Ring crushed to dust, the Sky Pacifier split in two, the world begun to die. Little by little, the sparks of Dying Will Flames, the lifeforce of their planet, snuffed out one by one.

Until nothing was left but a dead and barren land.

Truly a world without Dying Will Flames.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And so the world ends, Kyoko gaining her final wish. 
> 
> Please leave a review on your way out :D

**Author's Note:**

> [A remix of this fic](https://archiveofourown.org/works/13444023) AKA blue's original fic continues to destroy me and the rest enabled me to hell and back. So if I have to suffer, I'm dragging you all with me.
> 
> hoping this will only be another chapter or two. *muses* They do say beware the nice ones. 
> 
> Please leave a review on your way out!


End file.
